In the darkest hour before the light
by wildcatinuzuka
Summary: Hunk is hurt in the last Galra attack. Everyone else is so concerned with the downed paladin, they forgot about Lance and Lance is drowning in the darkness. But there is more to this darkness than meets the eye. Will the others save Lance before it is too late and will they learn more about the Blue Paladin?
1. Chapter 1

"Are you sure it will work Haggar? We must destroy the Paladins so we can claim Voltron," A strong but aged creature sat on a jagged throne, sickly yellow eyes glowing in the dim light that seemed to blanket the room.

A slender but matured woman stood in front of the man on the dais, cloaked in a robe with a hood covering her face in shadows, the only discernable feature was her glowing yellow eyes and red tattoos that graced her face, "Of course my lord," She waved an elegant hand to a small crate that sat innocently on a pedestal, "Just fire it at one of the Lions and let them bring it in. It will do the rest."

The smile that crossed the mans lips was cruel.

"Excellent."


	2. Chapter 2

The field was chaos. Galra fighters darted around like ants with wings and Lions danced through them in an attempt to avoid getting hit by the laser fire.

"On your left Shiro!" Lance hollered as a Galra attempted a suicide run on the Black Lion's left side. Shiro quickly twisted out of the way and the ship crashed into the main fleet.

" _Thanks Lance_!" Shiro called back as he barrelled rolled away from another fighter.

Lance turned his eyes back to the field, not wanting to miss a thing. He always had nightmares but he wanted to make sure that everyone got out alive. He spotted Keith diving at a rapid rate to avoid a pair of determined fighters but he was about to plow into two more. He watched with bated breath as Keith dodged just in time for the four crashed into each other.

" _Nice move Keith_!" Pidge yelled as Hunk gave a whoop. Lance released the breath that he didn't know that he was holding in. Lance hated it when others risked their lives like that and he could never figure out why he felt like this.

"Pidge! You have two fighters coming in on your six!" He yelled as the Green Lion started to weave desperately. The fighters kept up with the agile Lion as Pidge wove themselves through the field. Lance couldn't do nothing so he flew Blue behind a crag.

"Pidge, see that crag in front of you?"

" _… Yes."_

"I want you to fly past it and don't look back. I mean it Pidge."

" _Lance, what are you up too?_ " Pidge asked.

"Something that is going to get my ass kicked."

" _Lance… You better not be doing what I think you are going to do,_ " Hunk said. He knew Lance too well and the self-sacrificing idiot would do what Hunk thinks Lance is going to do.

"Relax… I got this," Lance said as he closed his eyes. He darkened his visor and leaned back in his seat. Lance felt a feeling in the back of his mind and he willingly welcomed it.

 ** _My pilot._**

Love and warmth surrounded him as the battle faded away.

He felt the metal under Blues paws.

He could hear every little sound that she did.

He would feel her system rippling as she got ready.

Blue knew him too well and she knew what he wanted to do.

Lance flexed his fingers and Blue flexed her claws.

Lance and Blue were so connected that Lance was sure that no paladin had gone or have ever been this deep before.

Haunches shifted and tail swished.

Blue and Lance were in their element.

Prey beware.

Green shot by in a near blur and they waited a second more.

 ** _Now!_**

 _"Now_!"

Blue flew out of her hiding spot and rammed the two ships at the same time. Blue snatched one fighter in her mouth while the other one was thrown into another crag of metal. The following explosion was both beautiful and heartbreaking.

Blue and Lance swung their head from side to side, shaking the ship and the poor pilot. They let go of the ship and it joined it brethren on the crag.

Lance slowly took a breath and slowly let go of the link. They had to work on getting out quicker but he trusted the others to cover him for a couple of seconds.

 ** _No leave._**

 _"Yes, leave. I must help my team."_

 ** _Lion want Pilot._**

 _"Team needs Pilot."_

 ** _Aw._**

 _"I'll come back soon. I promise."_

Blue seemed satisfied that she had Lance's word and Lance quickly returned to reality.

To six people hollering at him in his comm.

" _That was so cool!_ " That was Pidge.

" _Dammit Lance!_ " That was Shiro and he didn't sound happy at all.

" _That was brilliant young paladin!_ " That was so Coran.

" _Don't encourage him!_ " Allura. So Allura.

" _How did you do that?!_ " That was Keith and Keith wanted to know how he did it. Well too bad for him, Lance wasn't telling.

Silence and Lance knew he was in shit.

"Hunk? Hunk?" He called out slowly. Best not poke the bear.

" _I can't take you anywhere. You seem to do the impossible._ "

Lance let out a breath; he wasn't mad…yet, "Of course you can't. I'm just too awesome."

Hunk chuckled, " _Just stop trying to give me a heart-attack and we'll call it even._ "

Lance beamed, "I'll try but I can't guarantee that."

" _I'll give you that._ "

The team started to chuckle, thinking that the worst was over.

Only Hunk saw the laser turret powering up and aiming at Lance.

" _Lance!_ "

Lance turned and saw the turret fire. He closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable but the blast never hit him. He opened his eyes in time to see Hunk get hit by the blast, Yellow wrapping itself around Blue.

Lance could hear the rest of the team's frantic calls but all he could focus on was the Yellow Lion.

He didn't hear anything on Hunks' line.

He opened his mouth and screamed.

\\\\\\\\\

Hunk saw the laser fire at Lance and he knew want he must do.

"Lance!"

He surged forward in Yellow, pushing her forward. He could feel his own rage and need to protect surface in a violent wave. He saw Blue curl up into herself in an attempt to protect Lance.

Yellow managed to reach Blue in time and she curled herself around the smaller lion.

Hunk closed his eyes just as the laser hit Yellow.

/

Shiro quickly had Black snatch Yellows tail in his mouth and gently pulled her along. He could still hear Lance screaming and Shiro quickly shut off his comm line. He couldn't afford to have a panic attack right now; the team was top priority. Once he was alone he could have that breakdown.

"Keith, Pidge; get Lance. Don't let him out of your sight until we can get Hunk into a cryo-pod and even after that."

" _Roger._ "

" _Got it._ "

Shiro watched as Red and Green huddled on either side of Blue and started to herd her along.

" _Shiro, I think Lance has stopped but I don't know if that is a good thing,_ " Keith said over the line.

"Right," Shiro sighed, "Get him inside and see if Blue will let him out."

" _Understood,_ "

No one noticed the smear of black in Yellows back.


	3. Chapter 3

Lance wandered down the hallway in a daze.

Coran and Pidge had somehow managed to coax him out Blue and the mice had scampered up his leg once he was out of Blue and had settled on his shoulders, rubbing his cheeks with their own.

"Lance," Lance looked up to see Allura walking towards him, "I just thought I would let you know that Hunk is in the cryo-pod and he should be fine."

Lance just nodded causing Allura to sigh softly and walk away. The mice went with her, leaving Lance all alone in the hallway.

He continued his hazy wandering around the Castle, not wanting to go anywhere near the bedrooms, kitchen or lounge. He and Hunk had been cuddling in that Lounge just this morning.

 **Three hours ago,**

 _Lance sighed in delight, it was rare that they did anything like this anymore. He and Hunk were laying on one of the couches; Lance on top of Hunk. Hunk had his left arm across Lance's back and his right arm was playing with his hair._

 _"You ok baby?" Hunk asked as Lance melted into his arms._

 _Dammit._

 _Hunk did this every time._

 _Lance looked up at his boyfriend of almost seven years with owlish eyes, "Yeah, I'm ok now. Why?  
"Keith was taking pot shots at you today in training. I just want to make sure that you were ok."_

 _Lance melted a little more into Hunk, he could never lie to Hunk to save his own soul._

 _"If he hurt you in any way…"_

 _Lance shot up like a rocket. An angry Hunk is a vengeful Hunk and a vengeful Hunk is subtle with his revenge. He could poison Keith and Keith wouldn't even know it until it was too late._

 _"No! Don't poison him, we need him to save the universe!" Lance yelped. Hunk looked at him for a second, sighed and nodded._

 _"Fine," Lance settled back down, "But I reserve the right to sucker punch him the next time he does it."_

 _Lance huffed a laugh, "Sure but only if you feel like he is taking uncalled for pot shots."_

 _Hunk huffed, "Ok."_

 _They fell into a loving silence for a minute until Hunk ghosted his left hand over Lance's right outer thigh._

 _"Hunk…" Lance said slowly. Normally Lance was all for what Hunk wanted to do but they had no time for what they both wanted to do._

 _"Baby…" Hunk said back with a playful smirk. Lance could feel Hunk's hand move back to his ass and squeeze._

 _Lance yelped and leveled a look, "Oh it is on," He leaned in and captured Hunks lips with his own._

 _Hunk groaned deeply and licked Lance's bottom lip, smirking in satisfaction when Lance opened his lips with a whine._

 _Things would have spiraled out of control-and in an oh so good way- if the damn alarm didn't do off._

 _"Damn it," Lance moaned as he pulled away._

 _Hunk snorted, "Later."_

 _Lance nodded, "Later but I have to pilot Blue with a hard-on."_

 _Hunk laughed, "If it makes you feel better, so do I."_

 _Lance leaned in until his mouth was beside Hunk's ear, "Later than," Lance whispered._

 _"Agreed."_

But now later wasn't going to happen.

Lance wandered into Hunk's room, too tired and scared to consider eating. He slowly pulled off his armour and let it drop haphazardly across the floor. Lance pulled on one of Hunk's shirts and climbed into the bed; pulling the sheets to his chin. Lance started to shake, tears falling down his cheeks as he sobbed into the pillow; letting every ounce of pain, fear and regret flow in crystalline tears.

If he had just been paying attention instead of fucking around, he could have seen the laser power up.

If he was faster like Keith or Pidge, he could have dodged.

If he was smarter, he would have never let his guard down in the first place and Hunk wouldn't have had to get in the way.

As Lance cried himself to sleep, he never saw the slime slide across the sheets.

Once Lance was asleep, the slime climbed towards his face. It curled up around his face and neck and slowly faded as it was absorbed into the skin.


	4. Chapter 4

**Red water pooled around Lance's thighs, ripples dancing as he wadded through the thick liquid. Lance shivered as he kept walking.**

 **"Hello," He called, "Is anyone here?"**

 **He gagged at the coppery smell that filled the air as he kept walking.**

 **"You killed me."**

 **Lance froze at the voice, it was sad, bitter… betrayed.**

 **"Who are you?" Lance called out. Ripples lapped at his thighs as something moved towards him. Lance opened his mouth to call again when a person walked into his view and Lance froze.**

 **Hunk stared at him, blood dripping out of his mouth and a wound from his chest, right where his heart should be.**

 **"You killed me," Hunk said again. Lance felt tears pool and fall down his cheeks.**

 **"No, no. I didn't. I didn't kill you," Lance cried out. Hunk suddenly surged forward and got in Lance's face.**

 **"You killed me," Hunk said again and cold hands shoved Lance backwards into the water.**

 **No.**

 **Not water.**

 **Blood.**

 **Lance floundered as he sank in the blood, clots forming over his nose and mouth. He opened his mouth to scream and blood rushed in, coating his tongue with copper.**

\\\\\\\\\

Lance woke up with a scream, flailing around as the blankets tangled themselves around his legs. He fell off the bed with a shriek, taking them with him. Shiro came bolting into the room, surging forward as Lance got his legs trapped in the blankets in a desperate attempt to get free.

"Lance! It's ok!" Shiro called as he tried to get the blankets free. Once that last one was loose, he backed up.

Lance laid panting and shaking on the floor.

"Lance?" Shiro called, "Are you ok buddy?"

Lance looked at him, his eyes clouded and feral.

Shiro got nervous, "Lance?"

Lance suddenly launched himself at Shiro, teeth bared and hands curled in a half-fist. Shiro yelped as they fell in a tangle of limbs. Shiro was quick to pin Lance down, he didn't want to hurt the boy.

"Lance! Stand down! That is an order!"

Lance was quick to stop, his eyes clearing as he panted.

"Shiro? What's going on?" Lance asked, all too aware what position he was in. He was being pinned by Shiro and it _didn't_ send a thrill up his spine like it normally did when Hunk pinned him.

"You attacked me!"

"I did?"

Shiro sighed, "Must have been some dream. You must have thought I was the enemy or something to attack me like you did."  
Lance gulped, "I am sorry."

Shiro could feel the sadness pour from Lance, "It's ok Lance. Things like this happen," Shiro got up and pulled Lance with him. Only when they were standing up did Shiro realize that Lance was wearing nothing but Hunk's shirt and a pair of briefs.

Lance didn't seem to notice his appearance but Shiro did and he was quick to blush.

"Lance, you have no pants on."  
Lance just shrugged, "This is actually the most I've ever wore to bed."

Shiro's face couldn't go any redder… could it?  
Yes. Yes, it can.

"Ok," Shiro said, ignoring his red face, "Have a good night.

Lance looked like he wanted to say something but stopped, "You too."

Shiro nodded and fled.

Lance snorted, he couldn't wait to tell Hunk about it. He turned to tell him when Lance saw the bed was empty. His blood turned cold and he shakenly picked the blankets that fell on the floor. He padded out of the room, ignoring the cold under his feet as he let his feet care him. Silence filled the Castle as he made his way to the one room he wanted to be but also didn't want to be in.

The Healers wing.

Lance walked up to a pod, the only pod that was out in the open.

Hunk's pod.

Lance watched him for a few minutes than dropped the blankets on the ground and made them into a nest; climbing in the minute that Lance had arranged it just right.

Lance looked up at Hunk, watching the holo-screen that displayed his vitals.

No change.

Lance just laid there for a while, letting the soft pastel blue light wash over him. He drifted off again, knowing that Hunk was safe in his colour.

\\\\\\\\\\\

Keith paced the training dome as they waited for Lance to show up. No one had seen him at breakfast-which Keith thought was a good thing, Coran made a Paladin's breakfast. It was gross- and no one had seen him when they went to the dome.

Keith saw Shiro and Allura looking worriedly at the cloak and Coran stacking and restacking the hydration packs. Pidge was the only one that was calm.

Shiro finally had enough, "I'm going to find Lance," He stood up to leave.

"Wait."  
Everyone turned to Pidge, their glasses catching the light, "Lance is most likely where Hunk is; the cryo-pod."  
Everyone stared at Pidge.

Shiro face-palmed, "Of course. I'll go get him," and he headed towards the door.

"That would be a bad idea."

Shiro turned back towards Pidge and so did everyone else.

"I think I speak for all of us when I say huh?" Keith said.

Pidge snorted and shook their head, "What I mean is that Lance will not leave Hunk's side for any reason and I mean _any_ reason."  
Allura looked contemplative, "Why would he do that?"  
Pidge raised an eyebrow and face-palmed, "Do we have to spell it out?" They mumbled.

"Spell what out young paladin?" Coran asked.

Before Pidge could answer, Lance stumbled in. He looked like he had died and came back to life. His hair was sticking up and black circles under his eyes made his usually lively face seem ashen. Pidge was at his side in an instant with a smile, "Hey Lance," The warm and soft tone they had surprised everyone, "How are you doing?"

Lance looked at Pidge in a daze, "What?"

Pidge kept the soft smile on their face but everyone could see the worry dancing in their eyes, "Have you eaten yet? We know that you get dozy when you don't eat and we think that Coran left some food in the fridge."

Lance seemed to ponder the question for a few minutes too long then slowly shook his head. Pidge softly sighed and led Lance away.

"Come on, let's go eat. You can't think on an empty stomach."

Everyone watched as Pidge led Lance away. They went through the door when Keith finally realized that Pidge had never told them why Lance rarely left Hunk's side.


	5. Chapter 5

Pidge had convinced Lance to eat and then go back to Hunk. They could survive without him for a day.

Lance was grateful for an excuse to stay by Hunk's side and he did what they asked. He changed back into his pajamas and curled up in the nest that he had left back in the Pod room when he had camped there last night. The lights had dimmed to the point where they wouldn't bother Lance if he fell asleep and sleep Lance did.

He dozed for what felt like minutes before he felt something drape over his body and he cracked his eyes open in time to see Coran turn his attention to the screen that displayed Hunk's vitals.

"You have Lance worried sick Hunk," Coran said softly as Lance closed his eyes again, "The others may be blind but he really loves you. I've never seen another person as devoted as Lance. You better treat him right or else."

Lance nearly giggled; Hunk was getting the shovel talk without being awake for it.

Coran spoke to Hunk for a few more minutes and left.

Lance was about to drift off when the door opened again and Allura walked in. She seemed to be looking for something and Lance had just closed his eyes when he felt a hand gently lift his head and a pillow was placed underneath him. The hand gently laid him back down and the blankets fixed.

"Lance, I know that you fear the worst but Hunk is getting better. He'll be back soon and you two can goof off to your hearts content once he is cleared. I promise."  
He waited for Allura to say more but he heard rustling and her footsteps leading away from his nest. The door whooshed open and shut; silence filling the room. Lance settled down again and closed his eyes. Sleep claimed him quickly; spreading over him like a warm blanket.

/

Keith was training on his own in the dome; the others leaving when Pidge had come back on their own and saying that Lance wasn't coming back to training and if they thought otherwise, they were going to have to go through Pidge.

Everyone had decided that going against the one person that could hamstring them up to the ceiling and leave them there was probably a _bad idea_.

Shiro and Allura left while talking about tactics and strategies and Keith wondered if those were ways to convince Lance to come to training but Keith doubted they would work.

Pidge would probably hide in the vents by the Pod room and snipe anyone who tried to convince him.

Coran left with an excuse of checking on Hunk but Keith wasn't as socially stupid as people(Lance) seemed to think. Coran was really going to check on Lance and Keith knew this because Coran kept the vitals of anyone in those pods on his hand-held device's screen.

Pidge had scampered into the vents as soon as Shiro and Allura had left the room and only Pidge knew where they were going.

Keith struck the gladiator again when it tried to take advantage of his momentary distraction. Keith kept sparring for a few more minutes until the door whooshed open.

\\\\\\\\\

Lance had opened his eyes and stretched his muscles. He needed to do something or else he'll sleep too much and not sleep tonight.

He scrambled out of his nest and started to walk around the Castle; letting the cool metal freeze his feet as he let some unseen force guide him.

But this force was different.

It wasn't Blue.

He arrived in the dome and opened the door. He saw Keith and Keith looked like he had worked up a storm.

"Hey Keith, whatcha up too?" He asked as he slid in the room. Keith stared at him for a few minutes with red gracing his cheeks until Lance realized what was bugging him so much.

His pajamas consisted of Hunk's shirt and a pair of briefs.

Lance shrugged, "You ok? Is my clothes bugging you?"

Keith finally said something, "No. I've just never seen you dressed like this."

Lance scoffed, "That's nothing, you should have seen the time Hunk and I went to the local comic-con. I went as Jasmine and Hunk went as Aladdin."

Keith sputtered, much to Lance's amusement, "Did you really?!"  
Lance snorted, "Yea and we won best pairs costume."

Keith sputtered some more but managed to regain some composure, "Want to spar?"

Lance smirked deviously, "You just want to see up my shirt," Laughing when Keith started to sputter all over again.

Once Lance was done laughing, nodded while wiping tears out of his eyes, "Sure, I'll spar. I need the exercise anyway. How about hand-to-hand?"  
Keith nodded, "Sounds fine to me."  
They quickly settled into two different starting poses. Keith's reflected his simple brawling style but Lance's looked like he was relaxed. Keith shrugged and launched himself forward; hoping to land the first punch. It never occurred to him that Lance would _pirouette_ out of the way and slam the same leg that was in the air into Keith.

Keith was startled but he quickly straightened himself out and threw a roundhouse kick at Lance, only to be blocked by an identical kick. Lance was smirking and his hands were in behind his back.

Wait…

Behind his back?

Keith's eyes were not deceiving him, Lance had his hands were behind his back.

Lance smirked and twisted his ankle around Keith's and forced it down. Keith was unbalanced and fell. Lance tried to strike but Keith noticed a change in the movements.

They turned feral.

Lance had started the fight with his usual style of fighting but as it wore on, he realized something was wrong quickly.

He didn't want to spar.

He wanted to kill.

 ** _Yes, kill._**

 _"No. I don't want to kill."_

 ** _Kill._**

 _"No!"_

 ** _KILL!_**

 _"NO!"_

Lance quickly disengaged from the fight, noting with dark and unnatural satisfaction that Keith had bruises.

"Lance…" Keith started but Lance was quick to give an excuse.

"I have to go!" Ok so not much of an excuse but it served its purpose.

Keith tried to say something but Lance was gone.

\\\\\\\\\

Lance ran to the one place that he knew he would be safe.

He ran to Blue.

He scrambled inside his Lion and sealed the hatch. Once that was done, he collapsed into the pilot's seat, curled up and closed his eyes. Lance felt the familiar nudge that was Blue and welcomed her in.

 ** _My pilot. What is wrong?  
_** _"I wanted to kill Keith today when we sparred Blue. Not like I usually want to kill him but still have him alive but physically wanted to kill him! I also attacked Shiro; Shiro! One of the two people I could never attack!"_

 ** _Lance._**

 _"I'm scared Blue! What if there is something wrong with me?!"_ Lance started to sob in his seat as warmth and love surrounded him.

 ** _We fix it together._**

Lance let Blue sooth him to sleep with her warmth and the sound of waves hitting the sand washing over the speakers.

/

Keith hobbled to the med bay, wincing from all the protesting that his ribs were determined to do; Lance had done a number on him and if he had blades on his feet, the damage would have been worse.

But what had startled Keith was the look in Lance's eyes. It was desolate, uncontrollable, _dangerous_. It reminded Keith of a desperate and cornered wild animal.

"Oh my gosh! Keith! What happened?!" Before Keith could even yelp, Shiro was helping him to a table and was examining him.

Pidge was hovering as Shiro located the first aid kit and was pulling the bandages out. Shiro decided to give them a task, "Pidge, go get Allura, Coran and Lance."

Pidge nodded but Keith stopped them before they left, "Wait; the gladiator didn't give these to me."  
Shiro was looking at him confused but Pidge seemed to get it first, shock flitting across their face.

"What did you _do_?" Pidge asked as they went for the comm.

"Actually, I just asked for a spar," Keith said as Shiro wound bandages around his ribs.

Shiro still looked confused, "Care to fill me in?"

"Shiro, _Lance_ did this to me."

Allura and Coran had walked in just as Keith said that and the shock on all their faces would have had Pidge laughing on a normal day but this was anything but normal.

"Lance?" Shiro asked shocked, "Our Lance? The Lance that uses a gun?"

"Yes, our Lance."

"Why would he do this?" Allura asked shocked. Shock seemed to be a common theme today.

Pidge snorted, "Lance is not just good with a gun."

Everyone swiveled their head around towards them.

Pidge sighed.

"Lance has a unique fighting style, made of predominately kicks with very few hand attacks. He also can use a knife like it is going out of style."

Everyone stared at Pidge. Keith was first to say something, "Does he usually look like a wild animal when he is fighting?"

It was Pidge's turn to look confused, "No, Hunk and I compare him to a ballet dancer or a figure skater but never a wild animal. Why do you ask?"

"Because if that is the case, we may have a problem."

Coran looked at Keith, "Why is that young paladin?

"Because that means something is really wrong with Lance because his eyes weren't his own."


	6. Chapter 6

Lance left Blue once he was calm; cold biting into his feet as he moved.

 ** _Death._**

 ** _Kill._**

 ** _Pain._**

Lance wandered as thoughts that he didn't know weren't his own plagued his mind.

 ** _Hunk is dead because of you._**

" _No! He is alive, I was in the chamber the whole time!"_

 ** _He is dead because of you._**

 _"NO! NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!"_ Lance was leaning against the wall at this point, wide panic and tear-filled eyes clouding over, one eye its usual colour of the rich Caribbean Sea. The other the colour of the deepest obsidian.

 ** _How will you atone?_**

Lance stopped, tears still falling down his cheeks, _"Atone?"_

 ** _Yes, atone. How will you atone?"_**

Lance said nothing but started to move, feet carrying him to the one place in the ship that scared him.

 ** _Where are you going?_**

 _"The one place I can die in peace."_

 ** _Oh, and where is that?"_**

 _"The airlock."_

Lance walked towards the airlock, never noticing that Blue was screaming in his head while dark cackles filled his thoughts.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\

"Emperor Zarkon, there is an unexpected development."  
"What do you mean Haggar?"  
"The slime has possessed the Blue Paladin but instead of creating uncontrollable, homicidal rage towards the others, the slime has drove the Paladin towards suicide."

"That is interesting but it is of no matter. The Blue Paladin's demise will be enough to destroy the others."

"If it pleases you so my lord, I will continue to watch over the slime and make sure it does its job."

"Perfect."

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

"What do you mean his eyes were not his own?" Shiro asked slowly. Surely Keith was wrong.

Keith looked nervous, "His one eye was black, I mean like a really deep black. There was no iris, no pupil, just pure black."  
Pidge just looked at him like Keith had just grown a second head, "Are you sure?"

"Dammit I am sure! It looked like it belonged on an evil dragon or something! There was pure rage and disgust in his eyes," Keith's eyes softened, "But it wasn't disgust at me. He was disgusted with himself."  
It was Allura's turn to look confused., "Disgust with himself?"  
Shiro breathed through his nose and turned to Pidge, "Lance is homesick, isn't he?"

That wasn't really a question.

"Yes. He's had it since day one at Garrison and it had gotten worse once we were in space. Lance is also a great actor. We've lost count of how many times we had to drag Lance to the hospital wing by his leg; once physically by his leg. But he also always had issues with his self-image; the pack of bullies back at Garrison really didn't help either."  
Coran tilted his head, "Bullies? Lance had bullies?"

Pidge nodded, "Bad ones that seemed to be out for blood. Lance had reported them multiple times but they never stopped."

Allura covered her mouth to prevent the small gasp from being but Shiro went straight for the throat, "How the hell is that kid so lively if he went through hell and back?"

Pidge shrugged their shoulder, "Lance always had an upbeat attitude to begin with and he took their bullying as just another obstacle. Another reason for him to get better; it got worse when Kristian babbled."  
"Babbled what?" Keith asked.

Pidge groaned and opened their mouth when a pair of alarms went off but only one turned everyone's blood cold.

"That is the alarm for the airlock!"


	7. Chapter 7

Lance stared at all the stars before him.

There was so many that he could never count them.

Hunk loved the stars.

 ** _Lance_**.

Lance looked outside to see Hunk standing there, just outside the window. If Lance was thinking clearly, he would know that there was no air outside.

But he wasn't.

All he wanted was to be held by his beloved again.

"Hunk," Lance breathed out as tears clouded his vision, "I miss you so much. I just wish I could have held you one more time."

 ** _You are so close. Just open the door and we can be in the stars. Forever together, just like you wanted._**

Lance beamed but saddened slightly.

 ** _Beloved, what is wrong?_**

"I just wish the others didn't have to fight alone."

 ** _They will live without us. You have done enough beloved, now come here. I wish to hold you in my arms again._**

Lance smiled and reached for the button that would open the door.

"Lance! No!"

\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Shiro, Allura and Pidge quickly outpaced everyone in their frenzied need to get to the airlock before Lance did something to himself.

They never noticed Keith and Coran veer off towards the Pods Room.

They arrived in time to see Lance reach for the button and Pidge called out, "Lance! No!"  
Lance turned towards them and Shiro sucked a breath; Keith was right.

Lance's left eye was as black as bottomless obsidian.

Both eyes had tears.

"Don't stop me; Hunk is waiting for me."

Wait…

What?!

Allura spoke first, "Lance, Hunk is in the Pods Room. He is alive."

Lance started to shake his head and tremble, "No, he's dead."

"Lance, he is alive!" Shiro cried. He couldn't watch Lance throw himself away.

"No Shiro! I killed him! I am the reason he is dead!" Lance sobbed as tears fell from his eyes.

"Lance…" Pidge said softly, "Hunk is not dead. He is going to wake up."

"No, no, no, no! You're lying!"

They were at a loss. There seemed to be no way to reach him and both Coran and Keith weren't saying a word. She looked over her shoulder but couldn't see them.

Where were they?  
She turned her attention back to the escalating situation but she soon had her answer.

"Lance?"

\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Hunk stumbled out of the cryo-pod but no one caught him. He looked around and saw a nest of blankets.

His blankets and it looks like someone was laying in them.

Hunk started to stumble to the Castle wide com when Coran and Keith bolted in. Both had a scared look on their faces.

"Glad to see you're awake but we have to go," Keith said as he slipped under Hunk's left arm. Coran did the same for his right.  
"Go? Go where?" Hunk asked as they quickly moved down towards the one place Hunk knew Lance feared in the Castle more than any other part.

"Lance needs you," Coran said quickly as they got closer to the airlock.

"What do you mean Lance needs me?"

"Lance seem to think that you are dead and is trying to-" Keith was cut of by a yell.

"No, no, no, no! You're lying!"

Hunk ripped himself free of the other two and stumbled to the airlock door. Lance was by the airlock but that wasn't what startled Hunk.

It was the colour of his eyes. One was pure black and the other one was starting to show hints of black

"Lance?"

/

Lance froze, wide-and unknowingly heterochronic- eyes taking in the figure in front of him.

Hunk was in a white suit that clung to him and his signature orange headband was missing.

Lance turned to look outside. Hunk was there too.

"W-w-w-what?" Lance asked shakenly, not believing his eyes.

Either he was going bat-shit crazy or there was two Hunks.

He was more inclined to the bat-shit crazy theory.

"Lance, baby, whatcha doing?" Hunk by the door asked.

 ** _Lance, open the door. I'm right here._** Lance turned around to look at the Hunk that was out in the stars.

"Baby, I can't help you if you don't tell me what is wrong," The Hunk by the door said softly as he started to make his way closer.

 ** _He's lying. They are all lying to you,_** The Hunk that was outside hissed.

Lance was too confused to make sense of any of this.

"Stop! Just stop!" Lance screamed as he sank down against the door. The Hunk that was by the door stopped.

"Okay, I've stopped," He said soothingly as he sat down on the floor.

 ** _Open the door love,_** The Hunk outside said softly.

"Both of you stop talking!" Lance yelled. He didn't notice that everyone was looking at him like he was crazy, "Just stop!"  
"Lance…" Shiro called softly, "Who are talking about?"  
Lance started to cry, "There is a Hunk outside and a Hunk in here and I don't know what is going on and I'm so confused."

Keith quickly spared a glance out of the window.

There was no one there.

"Lance," Hunk said tenderly, "There is no one outside. I'm right here."  
 ** _They lie._**

"Prove it," Lance said softly.

"What?" Hunk asked.

"Prove to me you are the real Hunk," Lance looked at them with tears, "Prove to me that you are alive."

Hunk quickly racked his brain for anything that would prove to Lance that he was alive when it hit him like a mountain of bricks.

 _"Stupid Hunk,"_ He scolded himself as he slowly got closer, _"I should have thought of this from the get go."_

Hunk reached for Lance and quickly pulled Lance into his lap.

"What are you doing?" Lance yelped as Hunk slowly rubbed his back.

 ** _Fight back! They are deceiving you!_**

Hunk gave him a shit-eating grin.

"Proving I'm alive."

Hunk could feel the group behind him gawking but he elected to ignore them as he leaned in and snatched Lance's lips with his own.

Lance yelped and tried to wiggle away but Hunk just kept a gentle but firm hand on his lower back; waiting Lance out.

Lance eventually settled down and than engaged in oral warfare with Hunk.

Hunk threw every ounce of passion, love, desperation and determination into that one kiss, wanting to prove to Lance that he was alive and Lance wasn't dreaming.

Lance seemed to sob into the kiss as he also threw every drop of love, devotion and sadness into the mix. They refused to let go of each other as Hunk's hand started to wander; not even the idea of air was tempting to the two now.

Hunk pulled away first, taking gasps of breath as he hugged Lance close to him. Lance held onto Hunk as well.

"I'm alive, I'm alive, I'm alive," Hunk repeated softly; those words were like a sacred mantra to Lance at that moment.

Lance nodded once against the shoulder that he rested his forehead on.

The good moment was not to last.

Lance froze as he felt a rippling pain race through his skin and up his spine. He clung to Hunk as the pain got worse; digging his nails into Hunk's shoulder blades.

"Lance?! What is wrong?!" Hunk cried as he felt Lance cling to him and dig his nails into his shoulder blades.

The others surged forward as Lance started to tremble in Hunk's arms. Hunk held on to him as the trembling got worse. Lance suddenly froze for a few minutes and than went limp.

"Lance?! Lance!" Hunk yelled as Lance went limp.

"Hunk, lay him down," Shiro instructed as Keith ripped off his jacket. Hunk slowly lowered Lance with Keith handing his jacket over to use as a pillow.

Lance looked as pale as Keith did and everyone knew that was not a good thing. But what was eve worse was the coughing that started.

It sounded wet. Too wet. Shiro and Coran quickly rolled Lance onto his side while Keith, Pidge and Allura pulled Hunk away and comforted him; Pidge did most of the comforting. Keith and Allura stood nearby awkwardly, wanting nothing more than to help but Pidge seemed to be the only person that kept Hunk from going nuts.

"Hunk, it's going to be ok," Pidge soothed as Hunk watched Coran and Shiro work.

"But what if he isn't Pidge?! I had just found the perfect ring and now I don't know if I can give it to him!" Hunk sobbed and he clung to Pidge.

Before Pidge could say anything, Lance gave a garbled cough and made retching noises. Everyone that wasn't already there bolted over in time for Shiro to yell, "STOP!"

They all froze, wide eyes watching the scene.

It would be the stuff of nightmares for years to come.

Black sludge leaked out of Lance's nose, eyes and mouth; pooling under his head as more came out. Shiro and Coran backed everyone up until half of the airlock was filled with the stuff.

"What is that?!" Keith gagged as he retreated with Allura and Pidge. Shiro and Coran had their hands full trying to restrain Hunk so they really couldn't answer.

"Lance! Lance!" Hunk yelled as he tried to get to break free of Coran and Shiro's grip. The sludge suddenly started to changed from a puddle to…

Lance.


	8. Chapter 8

The Lance in front of them wasn't the Lance that they knew.

They could see the black in its skin and its smile was dark.

" ** _What is wrong baby_**?" It mocked as it scooped Lance up, " ** _Don't you like what you see?"_**

Hunk snarled as Dark Lance turned Lance's face towards him, " ** _Isn't he the prettiest colour you have ever seen?"_** It cooed as Lance seemed to get paler and black streaked his face.

"Let him go," Pidge said softly as they aimed their bayard at Dark Lance.

" ** _Oh yeah? What is a little thing like you going to me?_** " It teased as Lance finally stopped leaking sludge but the black streaks remained.

Pidge snorted, "We have a swordsman, a hand-to-hand specialist, a mechanic, a princess and a scientist."  
The slime huffed a sadistic laugh, " ** _That is all? That isn't much,_** "

"But you seem to forget one thing."

Shiro and Coran quickly caught onto Pidge's plan and got ready.

" ** _Oh? And what is that?_** "

"We have a Hunk."

Coran and Shiro let Hunk go.

Dark Lance looked like it was about to move but before it could Hunk landed a punch right in the face. Allura bolted forward at the same time and caught Lance before he hit the floor. She quickly dragged him away with Keith and Pidge's help and once Lance was safe, they turned back to the fight.

It wasn't a fight.

It was a massacre.

/

Hunk threw a punch right in the face, nailing Dark Lance right in the face. He saw Allura catch Lance out of the corner of his eyes but he ignored that in favour of kicking this things ass. Hunk threw another punch but Dark Lance caught his fist and threw him across the room. Hunk bounced off the wall and quickly charged. Dark Lance quickly wove and slammed its leg into Hunk's side. It got in a few more kicks before Hunk got the pattern but it wasn't that hard to learn.

It was the same pattern Lance tended to follow when he was planning on teaching someone a lesson.

Hunk knew this routine like the back of Lance's hand.

Dark Lance took another pirouette and Hunk caught its leg with his hand, snaking his arm up towards the face and nailing it. Dark Lance reeled backwards, taking Hunk with them and they started to brawl on the floor.

" ** _If he won't die,_** " Dark Lance screeched as Hunk nailed him in the face, " ** _I'll kill him myself._** "

That was the worst think Dark Lance could say.

Because Hunk lost it.

Royally.

Hunk roared and threw Dark Lance towards the airlock door, feeling an unnatural satisfaction as the creature slammed into the door that lead outside and that was when Hunk got an idea.

He reached for the button to open the door and Hunk quickly noted that everyone else had seemed to catch onto what he was doing; Shiro, Keith and Coran quickly grabbing Allura, Pidge and Lance.

"You want to go outside?" Hunk snarled, "Then let's go outside."

He slammed his fist against the button.

Dark Lance's eyes widened for all of two seconds before he was sucked outside by the sheer force of the pressure change. Hunk would have flown out too if it wasn't for the fact he had a grip on the door. He quickly banged his fist against the button again and the door closed.

Everyone fell to the floor in a heap, limbs getting tangled and yelling ensued.

"Who's hand is on my ass?" Pidge asked in a sweet and deadly voice.

"Sorry," Keith was ungodly quick to fess up.

"Like the view Shiro?" Coran teased once he realized just where the poor Black Paladin's face landed.

Shiro was quick to shoot up like a bullet, "No!" It was said a little too quickly and the blush wasn't helping the poor man much.

"Is everyone ok?" Allura asked as she pulled herself up. She breathed a sigh of relief when five yeses answered her back.

Wait…

Where's Lance?

"Where's Lance?!" Shiro said once he realized who was missing. This sparked a mad scramble to locate him and they all in relief once they realized that he had landed outside of the huddle thus avoiding the pile-up.

"LANCE!"

Oh, wait; they still had a panicky Hunk to deal with.

Hunk scrambled over to Lance and turned him over, panicking when he was greeted with a pale face and black lines that stood out on the sickly coloured skin.

"LANCE!"


	9. Chapter 9

**_Lance walked in a pool of black water, he had made sure that it wasn't blood. He wandered around, black ripples covering the waters surface as he moved._**

 ** _Lance wondered if he was dead._**

 ** _He wondered if anyone missed him._**

 ** _Tears graced his cheeks as he started to cry. He wondered if Hunk moved on; did they find a new Blue Paladin and did Pidge finally find their family._**

 ** _He opened his eyes just in time to see a tear drop hit the water._**

 ** _The second the tear hit the water, the world exploded into blue. Blue water, blue sky with clouds._**

 ** _Blue._**

 ** _Like his Lion._**

 ** _"Lance."_**

 ** _He turned around to see a slender and petite but beautiful woman. She had clearly Altean features, sea blue cheek marks gracing aristocratic cheeks. Caramel colour skin shone in the soft blue light but the aristocratic picture was ruined by navy hair that was pulled in a pair of high pigtails and a mischievous smile graced dark blue lips. A light blue Altean dress clung to her but it split on the sides and allowed her legs to show, no tights were underneath. The Altean look was also ruin by the pair of Hunk hand size lion ears and a long tail that brushed the water._**

 ** _He knew who this was._**

 ** _"You're Azul," He said as he slow approached. He didn't want to get any closer unless he was sure that she really was Blue._**

 ** _Her smile grew into a full-blown grin, "Yes Lance, I am Blue."_**

 ** _That was all Lance needed._**

 ** _He ran towards her and threw himself into her arms; Blue quickly catching him and holding close as Lance held onto her with all he had. She ran her left hand through his hair soothingly, letting him sob on his shoulder._**

 ** _"Wh-wh-what happened?" He sobbed, "Am I d-d-dead?"_**

 ** _"No sweet sea, you're not dead but you did get hurt badly," Blue soothed the distressed teen._**

 ** _Lance pulled away from Blue and looked around, "Then where am I?" He asked as he slowly stopped crying._**

 ** _"Our mindscape."_**

 ** _Lance looked at Blue like she was loco, "What?"_**

 ** _Blue snorted at his confused look, "This was created when you and I bonded. My last Paladin's and I's mindscape was a forest. Yours is much prettier."_**

 ** _"…You lost me…"_**

 ** _Blue started to laugh and Lance soon joined her._**

 ** _"Ok it's like this; every Paladin has a unique mindscape and we Lions get to share that mindscape. It allows us to communicate with each other," Blue said once she stopped laughing. Lance stopped laughing and looked at her horrified._**

 ** _"You mean you know every dirty thought I had of Hunk?!" He shrieked._**

 ** _Blue started to giggle._**

 ** _"Yep."_**

 ** _Lance placed his hands over his face, "Dios mio, this is embarrassing."_**

 ** _Blue snorted, "That would be the case if I had seen them," Blue giggled at Lance's face._**

 ** _"YOU LITTLE IMP!" Lance yelled at her, her laughter filling the air as he beat his fists against her shoulder, "THAT'S NOT FUNNY!"_**

 ** _"Yes it was," She purred, "But in all seriousness, I don't look at my Paladin's private thoughts as a personal rule. So, every scandalous thought and every dirty idea you have ever had is safe from me."_**

 ** _Lance huffed but chuckled, "Whew, Dios gracias. You are an evil kitty."_**

 ** _"I live to please."_**

 ** _Lance chuckled for a couple more minutes but he slowly grew quiet and Blue started to get concerned. She knew her Paladin better than even Hunk and she knew that quiet was never a good sign for Lance._**

 ** _"What is wrong sweet sea?" She asked._**

 ** _"Blue, can I ask a question?"_**

 ** _"Sure Mar dulce. What's up?"_**

 ** _"What is the Blue Paladin? I mean that the Green Paladin is supposed to intelligent and perspective and the Red Paladin is emotional and the Yellow Paladin is compassion. The Black Paladin is calm and collected but what am I?" He asked as tears started to flow down his cheeks all over again. He lowered his head to prevent Blue from seen him cry._**

 ** _Blue hated it when her Paladin cried._**

 ** _It broke her heart._**

 ** _Blue reached out and gently grasped his chin, pulling it up and showing Lance's face to her._**

 ** _She would never tell Lance this but Lance was beautiful when he cried. His face was streaked with tear stains and only his eyes and nose were red. Lance had somehow managed to chew his lip into a rich scarlet colour too._**

 ** _He looked honestly beautiful._**

 ** _No wonder Hunk loved him._**

 ** _But than again; Blue was also biased._**

 ** _"The Blue Paladin is unlike the other Paladins. Each of the others must fit a certain criteria for my sisters but for me you only need a few things. A Blue Paladin must be kind, loyal, determined and unstoppable when it comes to helping others and those they love. They are healers of the soul and the body and they often end up as the medic of the team. They must also be a sharp shot, protecting others even when they can't reach them. A Blue Paladin is parental, caring for those under their care. Not all Blue Paladins have these qualities but they are the qualities I seek in a Blue Paladin; a Blue Paladin is the glue and the heart of the Paladin's. There is no other Paladin like the Blue Paladin and there is no Blue Paladin like you. I've never met a Blue Paladin that embodies all of the qualities that I look for," Blue said, hoping that her Paladin could see her conviction._**

 ** _Lance looked at her quietly for a few minutes, crystalline tears falling down his cheek. He slowly raised a bronze hand and wiped the tears away._**

 ** _"Thank you Azul," He sniffled, "I needed that."_**

 ** _"You are welcome mi amor," She smiled. Blue pulled him back into a hug; Lance leaning into the touch. They stayed like that for a minute until Lance pulled away again._**

 ** _"What happened to me?" Lance asked._**

 ** _Oh, boy._**

 ** _Blue was afraid that question would come up._**

 ** _"What do you remember?' Blue asked instead in an attempt to buy time for her to compose herself so she wouldn't break down in front of Lance._**

 ** _Lance pondered the question for a minute or two, scrunching his face as he thought about it. Blue promptly squashed the urge to coo at the cute expression._**

 ** _Lance was too adorable for his own good._**

 ** _Lance spoke softly, "I remember the spar with Keith and talking to you but after that…" He paused for a second, "Nothing. Except a kiss. But nothing after that."_**

 ** _Blue looked at him, that was more than she expected if she was totally honest._**

 ** _"Well," She started slowly, "What had happened was that something was making your mind go la vida loco. I'm not sure what it was but I am willing to bet my bottom dollar that it was of a Galra design."_**

 ** _"Ok…" Lance said slowly. He knew that Azul wasn't done and he waited for her to continue. He finally got frustrated when she said nothing else._**

 ** _"Leon Azul…" Lance said slowly with a frown. The frown deepened when she flinched at the Spanish version of her name, "What happened?"_**

 ** _"Ummm… Well…"_**

 ** _"Azul! Stop beating around the agave bush and please tell me what happened!" Lance cried. Blue took a breath._**

 ** _"Ok, ok; what happened after you left me was that you decided to commit suicide by jumping out of the airlock," Lance got dead quiet, "Shiro and the others tried to stop you but you weren't listening. You were about to push the button when Hunk stopped you," Lance looked at Blue with wide Caribbean blue eyes, "Hunk tried to talk you down but you didn't believe that he was alive so he decided to kiss some sense into you," Lance flushed a pretty crimson, "You calmed down but than the slime decided to act and…" Blue shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself, almost like she was giving herself a hug, "It oozed out of you," It was Lance's turn to shudder, "It oozed out of your eyes, your nose, your mouth; it just… came out of you. You were in so much pain that you just passed out but the thing took your image and boy was Hunk pissed."_**

 ** _Lance just nodded, "Makes sense; he has a ferocious temper when those he loves are hurt in any way."_**

 ** _Blue just gave him a look, "Really…" She said sarcastically._**

 ** _Lance chuckled and Blue also laughed._**

 ** _"So, let me get this straight," Lance said once they stopped laughing, "I got possessed by demonic slime and nearly took myself out by the airlock and Hunk decided to snap me out of it by kissing me so the slime kicked my ass."_**

 ** _Blue nodded, "Pretty much but worse than that."_**

 ** _Blue watched as Lance's smile fell off his face and she knew she had to get to the bottom of whatever was upsetting her Pilot._**

 ** _"How is Hunk and the others? Did I hurt anyone?"_**

 ** _Of course, that was what Lance was worried about. Blue nearly snorted at Lance's behaviour but she was smarter than that and she didn't really want to get her ass kicked by an emotional Mexican,_**

 ** _That was a fate she wanted to avoid at all costs._**

 ** _She raised her hands in a soothing gesture, "No one was hurt but Keith is probably feeling the ass-kicking you gave him by now."_**

 ** _Lance winced and Blue felt like she had just kicked a puppy, "Sorry. But seriously, no one was hurt and Keith was only battered around," She suddenly gave a devilish smirk, "You my darling have incredible self restraint for a supposed non-hand to hand specialist. You kicked his ass good. I'm so proud of you."_**

 ** _Lance scoffed and looked down at the water that lapped at his calves, "I nearly killed him, how is that something to be proud of?"_**

 ** _"Because you showed restraint," Lance looked up with shock in his eyes, "You had been placed in a moment where you were under the things control and you still restrained yourself. I am proud of you Lance."_**

 ** _Lance gave his Lion a watery smile, "Thanks Azul. I needed that."_**

 ** _Blue smiled back, "You're welcome but it's time for you to go back to reality."_**

 ** _Lance looked at her with soft eyes, "Yea, Hunk has gotta be flipping out by now," He gave a low chuckle, "Shiro and Coran must have their hands full."_**

 ** _Blue chuckled with him, "That's all Black has been complaining since you lost conscious."_**

 ** _Blue pulled Lance into a bone-crushing hug and she was pleased when Lance wrapped his arms around  
"Will I see you again?" Lance asked as he leaned into Blue. _**

**_"Yes Lance, you'll see me again but you can talk to me anytime you want to. I am in your head after all," She teased. Lance laughed and smiled at Blue than he turned to look around._**

 ** _Blue waited with a smirk._**

 ** _Lance groaned._**

 ** _"Blue, how do I get out?"_**

 ** _"Just close your eyes el amor."_**

 ** _Lance closed his eyes and knew no more._**


	10. Chapter 10

"LANCE!"

Hunk was going crazy, shaking Lance lightly only to be pulled away by Keith and Shiro to let Coran and Allura get to the downed teen.

Hunk wasn't happy about that; he galvanized into an enraged ball of restless energy that only wanted to do one thing.

Go to Lance.

"LANCE! LANCE!"

Fun fact.

When Hunk got angry, he got violent.

Pidge knew that.

Shiro and Keith… not so much.

Hunk started to struggle with Keith and Shiro, both Paladin's having a hard time keeping Hunk contained as he started to swing when he realized that they weren't letting go.

"Dammit!" Shiro yelped when Hunk's fist connected with his chest.

That was going to bruise in the morning.

Keith nearly got a fist slammed into his face but he managed to duck it in time.

Suddenly Pidge came out of no where; slapping Hunk across the face. Shiro opened his mouth to chew them out when they started to speak, "Hunk! Pull yourself together man!"

"But Lance…"

"Is not dead! Do you think Lance would leave this war without a fight?!"

Hunk shook his head rapidly.

"Exactly!" Pidge said. Shiro and Keith could see the conviction in their eyes.

"Hunk?"

Everyone swiveled to look at the huddle on the floor; Allura looking like she wanted to cry and Coran with a giant goofy grin.

Lance was slowly turning his head and looking at Hunk.

Keith and Shiro quickly let him go and Pidge got out of the way.

Their parents didn't raise fools and their parents warned them to never get in between two lovers.

Hunk got on his knees and took one of Lance's hand in both of his hands, "Hey baby, how do you feel?"

Lance gave a soft and weak laugh, "Crappy. Every muscle in my body feels like it was pulled through the wringer than forced to face the Gladiator and Keith at the same time… and they won."

Everyone laughed softly and Hunk smiled tenderly, "I think that we could spend a few days in bed away from the Gladiator and Keith."

Keith gave an indignant squawk as they others laughed. Hunk went to scoop Lance up when his muscles decided that it was the perfect time to rebel.

"Umm… Shiro?"

Shiro stopped laughing and looked at the blushing Hunk, "Yes?"

"Can you pick him up and get someone to help me up? My muscles decided to rebel."

Lance weakly looked at Hunk with worry; Hunk was quick to notice and was just as quick to sooth his beloved, "My muscles are just sore, that's all."

Shiro walked over and gently knelt; gingerly placing his arms under the teens legs and back and lifting him up. Keith and Coran helped Hunk up and the exhausted group hobbled to the medical wing.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Hunk looked over had his sleeping boyfriend with tender eyes, watching for any signs of discomfort. The trip to the medical wing after the whole fiasco had revealed that when Lance had rejected the…thing… from his body, microscopic tears had formed in every muscle in his body.

Lance translated that as he was going to be sore for a good week at least.

Allura had wanted to stick him in a cryo-pod but Lance had refused on the grounds that they shouldn't become dependant on the pods for every little thing. Allura finally gave in after Lance transformed into a koala and clung to Shiro with all the very little strength that he had left.

It hadn't helped that Pidge, Coran, and Hunk had busted a lung laughing at the whole situation.

Pidge then gathered the blanket nest that Lance had left behind and led the way back to Hunk's room because there was no way they could convince either one of them to stay in their respective rooms.

They didn't even have the heart to separate them.

It would be like kicking a pair of puppies.

Hunk didn't remember what happened once their heads hit the pillows but he remembered waking up to see Lance curl up beside him and snuggle with the Hawaiian teen.

That was three hours ago, if the clock was to be trusted and Hunk started to run his fingers through his boyfriend's hair, marvelling at just how soft it was.

"Hey," Hunk looked down to see Lance looking at him with tender and tired eyes, "How are you feeling mi amor?"

Hunk gave a soft chuckle, "I'm fine, sore as hell but fine."  
Lance smiled softly but Hunk could see the sadness in his eyes and Hunk was going to do something about it. He leaned over and started to place butterfly kisses all over Lance's pretty face. This always worked when Lance was upset and Hunk was pleased to note that this simple fact was still true when Lance started to giggle and rolled over, unwittingly giving Hunk more skin to kiss.

"What's wrong?" Hunk murmured as he kissed down Lance's neck. Lance sighed softly and carded his hands through Hunk's hair and realized that his hair was getting long; it was going to need a cut soon and the same must apply for the others.

"I'm fine," Lance murmured back but Hunk clearly didn't believe him because he nipped Lance's shoulder, "Ow! Hey, that hurt!"

Hunk looked at Lance, "What's wrong?" He asked again.

"I was just thinking about the last few days," Lance admitted softly, "You were the one hurt and yet you saved my ass and now everyone is going to treat me like glass and I don't _want_ that."

"There is no way that they treat you like that," Hunk said, "Besides, if they do just send to me or Pidge; we'll kick their ass."

Lance gave a huffing laugh and he pressed his forehead against Hunk's, "I feel so defeated though. I defeated the slime but now everyone knows that I'm not strong and I have to be strong to fight the Galra. I'm weak."

Hunk suddenly surged forward and caught Lance's lips in a desperate lip lock. Teeth clacked together but neither of them truly cared as lips responded in kind. They spent a few good minutes entangled with one another and they pulled away, their breath mixing.

"Lance," Hunk started, "You are not weak. You are so strong. So strong; I would have gone loco way before you did but you kicked that things ass," Lance looked like he wanted to say something but Hunk was on a roll and he wasn't going to stop, "I didn't fall in love with you for your looks-although your looks are a definite bonus- I fell in love with your wonderful, spunky, sassy, funny, and beautiful personality. I fell in love with you the minute I saw you at that fair where you wore your sisters top and shorts with a flower in your hair. I fell in love with you."

Lance was silent; laying flat on his back and crystalline tears falling down his cheeks. Hunk set out to wipe those pretty cheeks dry when Lance pulled him into a hug, "Thank you," Lance whispered, "Thank you."

They never noticed the door shut or the smiles that graced everyone's lips as they walked away from the loving scene.


	11. Chapter 11

It had been a few days since the attack of the slime-as Keith deemed that stressed filled day- and Allura had decided that a short break was in order.

It was because the team needed time to heal.

The decision had nothing to do with the fact that everyone's favourite pygmy paladin had terrorized her.

Nope, they had nothing to do with it.

At all.

So Allura had opened a wormhole and dropped them in a random Galra-free solar system that conveniently had a jungle planet that was safe for humans to go on.

It was not as random as the others think because Hunk had found it beforehand.

Hunk had found it when he was looking for the perfect planet to propose.

He had wanted to do it on Earth but he decided to bump up the date after he nearly lost Lance to the slime. He had learned the hard way that they could die the next day in this intergalactic war and he wanted to leave this universe with no regrets and he knew he would regret it if he never did this.

So, when he had found the planet, he quickly went to convince Allura to go there. Allura had-surprisingly- agreed and the rest was history.

Lance had taken one look at the planet and went _bananas_.

Hunk had to hold him to stop him from annoying Coran and Allura as they quickly scanned the planet to ensure it was human-friendly and he had started to wiggle around like a puppy when they had cleared it.

Thus, leading to the current scene.

Lance was bouncing around in a pair of shorts, a white tank top and a translucent reef blue tie-on shirt that went over the shorts and a tank top. Lance's hair was pulled back after he realized that it had gone out of control and he was wearing flip-flops.

"Let's go! My Abuela moves faster than you and she's _85_!" Lance called as he darted around. They were going to take a shuttle down and Shiro had Hunk and Keith help him pack everything that they would need for a beach day. Pidge and Allura were changing and Coran was doing a last-minute check of the Castle.

Lance… he was _everywhere_.

He was running around, helping Coran one minute and Keith, Shiro, and Hunk pack the next minute. He was fetching things and putting them in the pile; towels, shirts, sandals, a pair of umbrellas, a box of sunscreen filled with different SPF's.

Hunk had no clue where Lance was getting all this shit from.

Honestly.

Hunk watched as Lance took Pidge's laptop away and Pidge proceeded to chase the hyperactive Mexican around the Castle in a desperate bid for their laptop but they seemed to have forgotten that Lance was a living bullet on sugar.

"Ok," Hunk said in amusement, "Who fed him sugar?"

Allura chuckled as Pidge stumbled back into the hanger sans a laptop but they brightened when Lance came back with it and Shiro snorted when Lance told Pidge that if he caught Pidge working on anything stressful, he was going to confiscate it. Keith tried not to laugh as Pidge pouted but finally agreed to his terms. Pidge put the laptop in their bag and stuck it in the shuttle, away from bronze fingers.

"Love," Hunk called and Lance was quick to turn around, "Could you get a plastic bag in case Shiro's arm doesn't like the water?"

"Yep!" Lance said and he pirouetted around and raced out of the hanger. Hunk could only huff in amusement and he turned to see everyone but Pidge looking at Lance with wonder. So far, no pity had been seen in anyone's eyes but Lance wasn't so convinced about that issue.

"Ok, ask," Hunk said as he waited for the first question.

He didn't have to wait long.

"How long have you two been dating?" Keith asked.

Good question to start with.

"I met Lance at the Garrison county bazaar when I was maybe twelve. He was eleven- on the cusp of turning twelve- and was with his siblings and parents at their farms stand. My parents own a restaurant and they were always on the hunt for the best ingredients. Lance's parents could have grown just about anything and they showed it. I remember seeing milk, eggs, herbs, corn, squash, beans, cucumbers and more and it all tasted damn good too. My parents went to talk to the McClain's- that's Lance's last name- about getting their produce into our kitchen and I started to talk to Lance. He was a skinny thing and he could only wear his sister's clothes so he was wearing a pair of jean shorts and a white tank top with a Mayan poncho his Abuela had made the traditional way," He was quickly interrupted by Pidge.

"He's Mayan?"

"Yep, pay attention. There'll be a test later," Hunk said, "Anyway, we spent the day running around the bazaar with his sister Bonita and had the best time of our lives and that started our friendship but what started our relationship was when Lance was thirteen and I was fourteen. I had just realized I was pansexual and Lance had actually beat me in terms of the sexual discovery department when he told me he was gay and before you say anything about him flirting with everyone, just know that his whole family does it; I swear it's genetic. Hell, his lesbian sister Anna-Marie flirted with me and she had her girlfriend with her too. I spent three months trying not to fall in love with my best friend and I failed miserably. Lance came to me a few weeks into the third month, took me to the beach, and told me that he had a crush on someone. I was so heartbroken but I told him that I would be his wingman. He told me that was going to be impossible because I couldn't talk myself up. I was shocked but when he smiled at me shyly and asked if we could give us a chance, I scooped him up and twirled him around in my arms and I kissed him full on the lips. It was fireworks going off in my brain and we fell on the sand."

A new voice interrupted, "I thought our parents were gonna freak when we told them we were dating. Mama and Papa cried in delight and your Mom and Dad started to plan our first date if I remember this correctly. I think you got five different shovel talks from my siblings and I know I got one from your father; your mother scares me however, she could poison me and I wouldn't even know it until it was too late," Everyone turned to see Lance armed with a few dozen plastic bags and duck tape.

Okay, where the hell was Lance getting all this shit from?!

Lance sauntered over and placed the bags and the tape in the same box as the sunscreen. He swayed back to Hunk and took his left hand; Hunk was just thankful that he didn't grab the right one or he would have found it.

"We've been together ever since. Never missed the other's events or family reunion; the face of my homophobic aunt and uncle was hilarious when I brought Hunk over for Navidad. My family never got a Christmas card from them again after that interesting fiasco though it wasn't as interesting as the judge that said my Mexican Chocolate cake was the worst thing he ever tasted after he saw me kiss Hunk on the lips or the teacher that marched us to the principles office because we kissed before class like every couple does."  
Hunk snorted, "I thought the principle was going to bust a gut, he was laughing that hard. He sent us home for the day as an apology and moved us to another class after she did it again. That was how we started to date," Hunk concluded as he squeezed the strong but delicate bronze hand with his own darker hand.

Lance waited for the next question and Shiro didn't disappoint, "How long have you been dating?"  
Easy question.

"Six and a half years," Hunk answered as Lance started to fidget.

Lance _really wanted_ to go to the planet.

Allura thankfully saw the signs when Hunk did and she quickly intervened, "Let's go planet side; I don't know about you but I want to go swimming."

Hunk was just glad that the princess was smart.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Hunk watched as Lance dragged Pidge into the water, his tank-top and shorts absolutely soaking wet and brown hair glistening with azure streams of water.

Pidge honestly just looked like a drowned rat next to Lance.

It could be the fact that Hunk was the most biased man on the beach.

Shiro was sprawled out on a towel with a book in his hand and his eyes covered with a pair of shades that Lance had shoved on his eyes.

That had been an absolutely comical scene.

Keith was helping Hunk cook while Allura took a page out of Shiro's book and was reclining on a beach chair that Lance had brought with an Altean book.

Coran was splashing around with Lance and Pidge and looking even more like a drowned rat than Pidge did.

Keith snorted when Coran and Pidge tackled Lance into the water and a giant splashing sound filled the air.

"ACK! Guys!" Lance screeched as they dragged him through the water.

Laughter was the only response to Lance's complaint.

Hunk quickly called over to the thrashing trio before they could proceed to drown themselves, "Guys! Lunch! Get over here before Shiro and I eat it all!"

The words resulted in a stampede that was all limbs, splashing and controlled chaos. Lance was in the lead with Pidge and Coran following close behind him but that lead was quickly lost when Pidge snatched Lance's shorts and pulled him into the sand. Lance howled at Pidge and Coran laughed as he reached the grill first.

Shiro ambled over and pulled the two apart, "Hunk's threat still stands," He said, utterly relaxed.

Lance and Pidge looked at him, judging whether or not Shiro would go through with it. Lance seemed to believe him because he scrambled over to where Hunk was. Hunk quickly leaned down and Lance met him halfway in a chaste kiss.

Hunk could feel Lance chuckle into the kiss when Pidge promptly said "Eww," and fled to the relative safety that laid in Shiro's direction, "Shiro, they're being cute again. Make them stop.

"They are a _couple_ Pidge," Shiro pointed out as he munched on a slice of bread, "They're _allowed_ to act all cute and gooey, it's basically the meaning of the word dating."

'Still," they whined, "I want a ban on all PDA's from now on. Please, I beg you; Voltron depends on you Shiro, don't let us down."

Lance chuckled and turned to see Pidge had gotten on their knees, hands clasped and big pleading eyes aimed at Shiro. Shiro was desperately avoiding eye contact with the pygmy paladin but Keith and Coran were trying to contain their laughter. Allura was chuckling and Hunk was guffawing at Shiro's desperate avoidance of Pidge.

"Ok Pidge lay off the doe eyes of doom for a few and come get something to eat," Lance drawled as he helped himself to some food. Pidge groaned but obeyed and Shiro gave a soft sigh of relief as they left to get some food.

Lance chuckled as Shiro smiled at him, "Thanks Lance, I was about to cave when you intervened."

"No problem; Neves tries to do the same thing all the time to Mama, Dad intervenes all the time as well," Lance said as Pidge and Keith fought over a piece of meat and Coran proceeded to separate them.

Hunk laughed and took Lance's hand in his own, "Lance is resistant as well."  
Lance chuckled and squeezed Hunk's hand, "You, el amor, are not. I've seen you cave to Neves and the younger ones all the time."

Hunk laughed, "You have me there. Any children we have are gonna be spoiled by me. You're gonna have to play bad cop."

Lance snorted and picked up a slice of fruit from his plate, "No, we have to be balanced cops," he said as he munched on the fruit.

Hunk smiled softly, "Ok then, balance cops it is then."

It felt heavy in his pocket.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Hunk pulled Lance up as they climbed up towards a cliff he had spotted from the beach.

"Hunk, where are we going?" He asked as Hunk lifted him up and placed him on the ledge above him.

Hunk beamed up at Lance with the smile that made Lance's heart melt and his legs feel like Jell-O, "To the top of the cliff. I wanna see the sunset with you."

Lance was a hopeless romantic and Hunk knew it. If Lance could, he would have turned into a puddle of goo at Hunk's feet.

Hunk and Lance continued to climb until they reached the top. They had managed to get to the top of the cliff with ten minutes to spare until sunset. The sun was turning into a pale orange as it crept closer to the horizon. Red, yellows, and pink started to bleed into the light and blue and black was creeping in at the edges.

It was beautiful.

Hunk turned towards the left to look at Lance, watching the light paint his gorgeous bronze skin and soft umber hair. The soft light made Lance look even more exotic than usual and Hunk couldn't help but wonder what god he had pleased to end up with Lance as his beloved boyfriend.

And soon, so much more.

His right pocket never felt heavier.

Hunk's nerves were a mess and he was trembling.

Breathe.

Hunk reached for his pocket with trembling hands and grasped a little black velvet box, pulling it out. He quickly sank down on one knee.

Lance whipped to the right when he heard the gravel crunch and looked down in shock. Hunk quickly pulled the top open to reveal a ring nestled in dark blue fabric.

It was a beautiful and slender rose gold with a medium sized cushion-cut diamond that had an infinity backing on the top that had sapphires and topazes looping around each other.

Lance couldn't speak.

His tongue was tied.

First time for everything.

"Lance," Hunk started, "I remember when I first met you at that bazaar and all I could think about was how beautiful you were. I knew I would never find someone with a personality as beautiful as yours was. You looked so beautiful in the light and that beauty grew as we got older. When I realized I was pan, I felt like I was doomed because I fell in love with _you_. All I could think about was how you made the world so much more beautiful because you were in it. When you told me you loved someone on that beach, my heart broke; I couldn't bear the idea that someone else was getting all your love but I was determined to be your best friend and support you. When you told me that I couldn't talk myself up, I felt like the world was exploding and that first kiss was worth its weight in gold. Loving you everyday is an adventure. We laughed, we fought, we cried, we shared dreams, we shared fears. What we never did was break up or stop loving each other. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and I can't think of a better person to grow old with. Lance Antonio McClain, will you marry me?"

\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Lance couldn't speak.

Hunk-his best friend since he was eleven and boyfriend since he was thirteen- just proposed to him.

Proposed.

To Lance.

Holy shit.

Lance started to giggle and Hunk gave him a hurt look until Lance fell to his knees, pulled a little blue box out of his pocket, and opened it.

The thick band that rested in black cloth was a silver colour, the inside having a unique shine to it that reminded the Hawaiian teen of abalone shells. Now that he looked at it, it was abalone shell.

"I found the ring at a shop that advertised Earthen wares; I honestly don't think they know what this ring was for but they advertised it as a cup holder. I was planning on proposing to you as well but I think Pidge helped the both of us and is now laughing at us as we speak," Lance said as he laughed and Hunk couldn't help but laugh as well.

Good ole Pidge, trolling hopeless couples since the year they were born.

Hunk wasn't sure if he should whack Pidge or send them flowers.

"Is that a yes?" Hunk asked.

"Yes, you big goofy lug. Yes," Lance said and Hunk realized that Lance was crying.

"Will you marry _me_?" Lance asked, tears running down his face and a smile on his lips.

"Yes Lance, I'll marry you. I just told you there is no other person I want to marry," Hunk replied.

Oh great, now he was crying.

They were both crying.

Lance gently tugged the band free and picked Hunk's trembling hand up. Hunk watched with baited breath as Lance placed the ring on his left finger. It was a perfect fit.

Hunk pulled the ring out of the box and pulled Lance's hand closer. He could feel Lance shaking- apparently, Hunk wasn't the only one to have pre-proposal nerves- as Hunk slide the elegant ring onto Lance's left ring finger.

"Isn't this usually sealed with a kiss?" Hunk teased as he tried to wipe his tears away.

He stopped when Lance cradled Hunk's face in his hands and smiled; wiping tears away with his thumbs, "It's usually is," Lance agreed and pulled Hunk closer.

Fireworks went off in both of their heads as their lips connected.

It was sweet

It was chaste.

It was soft

It was intoxicating.

It was spice.

It was depth.

It was dimensional.

It was life.

It was Lance.

It was Hunk.

It was timeless.

Limitless.

Free.

Addictive.

Breath-taking

Beautiful.

Hunk pulled back first and realized that the sun had long since set. The sky was now a soft blue-black that was dotted with twinkling stars. The planets moon was a soft silverish-white that made Lance look even more beautiful than the sun's rich colours had.

"I'll call Shiro and tell him that we need a pickup. We're not climbing down," Hunk said as he wiped Lance's tears away.

"Okay," Lance whispered.

Shiro had laughed at them when they had called and said that they needed a ride down but the man had thankfully came anyway. Turns out that they had packed up while the two had been on the cliff and were planning to head back to the Castle once Lance and Hunk had returned. Picking them up would save time.

The flight to the Castle had been quiet but Hunk and Lance had the look of a pair of cats that had gotten cream or something.

Pidge knew better.

But it was Keith that had noticed the rings first.

"Lance? When did you get a ring?" Keith asked at breakfast the next day.

Lance choked on his food and Pidge started to giggle as Hunk-on the left- and Coran- on the right- slapped his back.

"¡Mierda Santa! Yo sabía que me olvidaba algo! ¡Nos olvidamos de decirles!" Lance gasped as soon as he could breath again.

"I think they would appreciate that statement in English darling; not Spanish," Hunk said lightly.

"Holy shit! I knew I forgot something! We forgot to tell them!"

"Not the first sentence," Shiro commented.

Hunk and Lance beamed at each other and then at the others.

"Are you gonna tell us or not?" Pidge asked dryly.

"Well," Lance said with that same silly grin.

"Yes?" Allura asked.

"Well," Hunk said, a mischievous grin on his lips.

"Don't keep us in suspense," Shiro said kindly, "Pidge might tell us first."

Lance and Hunk beamed at each other, giddiness filling their features, "We're getting married! We're engaged" They said at the exact same time. In sync and the whole nine yards.

Silence filled the hall for two seconds.

Two.

That was all it took…

"WHAT?!"

For the chaos to start.

"Engaged?" Shiro asked

"When? How?" That was Allura.

"Congratulations!" There's Coran.

Pidge just laughed.

Keith smiled softly but said nothing.

Besides, actions speak louder than words.

"Last night. The excitement of it all wore us out and we forgot to tell you guys," Hunk explained as Keith smiled at them.

"Wow,' Shiro breathed out, "That's incredible. Marriage."

"Shiro," Lance asked, "Are you going into shock? Hunk, I think Shiro is going into shock."

"More importantly," Allura dismissed, "When is the wedding?"

"We don't know yet," Hunk answered as Lance and Pidge tried to bring Shiro out of his shock, "We'll be talking about that."

Lance smiled and intertwined their hands as the team kept talking.

/

Lance's mama once told him that there was a reason to every tragedy, a lesson in the pain. These lessons make people stronger, wiser, kinder.

Lance took that lesson to heart.

When the bullies in public school picked on him for his heritage, he went home and spent hours listening to Abuela; learning about the very heritage the kids saw fit to try and destroy.

When he was told by those same kids that he will never find someone that loved him because he was ugly and a waste of space, he created a beauty routine and told himself every day that he was beautiful and worth it.

When he was berated by students in high school and the teachers did nothing because to them, he was the Hispanic kid that will likely become a drug addict and a prostitute, he got some of the best grades in the school and protested drug abuse.

When that teacher told him, that boys kissing boys or girls kissing girls was a sin and anyone who wasn't straight was going to hell, he told her that love and religion didn't mix and hatred wasn't a good look on her.

When they told him that a Hispanic kid would never be a fighter pilot, he worked his ass off to get into the program. If they wanted to believe that the only reason that he got in was because Keith walked, so be it but Lance knew better.

When the boys at the Garrison ridiculed him for being gay, he walked around the school with a rainbow belt for a week straight.

Point is, Lance learned that adversity meant that you were on the right track.

He also learned to never count your blessings because there was just too many of them.

He had Hunk- his fiancée.

He had a large family- crazy as they were.

He had Azul- his leading lady and shared a large spot in his heart with Hunk and his family.

He had Team Voltron- his Space family.

He had his skills- developed over time to shape into what he was.

Lance had blessings and curses in spades. He had a future.

He had hope.

So, whenever _you_ lose hope; remember this.

Your blessings are stronger than your curses.

When adversity comes knocking; answer the door with a smile and a loaded gun.

Or bayard. Whatever works.

Answer the door with the gun and remember.

Adversity is a teacher, when you let it teach.

It shapes you, defines you, changes you, and gets you started on the right path.

You are a hidden treasure, sitting in plain sight.

The brightest lights come from the darkest hour.

- _FIN_ -

 **Wildcat: There is a sequel in the works! It's a series of one-shots leading to the wedding day.**

 **Lance: Disclaimer. -_-'**

 **Wildcat: Oh, yeah... I don't own Voltron LD. If I did, Shance or Hunce would be canon. It's a toss-up. Thanks for all the support. ^-^. Love you all.**


End file.
